By | Swisscontact
Guatemala, a country with rich cultural and linguistic diversity, mostly inhabited by communities of Mayan descent, faces significant economic challenges. Its gross domestic product (GDP) per capita is below the regional average and it has considerable dependence on remittances from migrants. What’s more, a crisis of gender violence that stems from patriarchal structures and discrimination leaves women in a vulnerable situation. In this adverse context, female entrepreneurship emerges as a transformative force, providing Guatemalan women with opportunities for economic autonomy and social empowerment.
Strategies for the Success of Women Entrepreneurs
Swisscontact, thanks to its ample international experience, has developed innovative strategies to strengthen the competencies of women entrepreneurs and to promote sustainable economic opportunities. In Guatemala, these strategies took shape through the Empodera project, which has made a significant impact in the lives of over 1,700 women, many of whom now lead numerous economic initiatives.
A fundamental element for achieving genuine economic empowerment of women lies in providing solid support for entrepreneurship. This entails cultivating the spirit of enterprise and guaranteeing effective financial inclusion, taking care to provide the technical tools necessary for the success of sustainable businesses.
Through a wide perspective that includes personalized mentoring for women, by women, practical guidance, emotional support, and access to up-to-date information (financing opportunities, suitable markets, collaborative networks, latest industry trends), women can overcome the barriers to entrepreneurship.
“We have received professional technical training to color each of the threads we weave at our association. We have received training in financial education, technical advice for the business, and they even gave us seed capital. Additionally, they trained us in economic empowerment and on our sexual and reproductive rights, so we, the women, can now have plans for our lives, for our homes, for our community, and, above all, for our finances,” emphasizes Ligia Tun, who participated in the Empodera project.
The comprehensive approach to entrepreneurship that we promote also includes addressing the childcare needs of women entrepreneurs by offering flexible training hours and confronting inequality in areas such as sexual and reproductive health, the prevention of violence, and the advancement of the care economy, thus removing some of the obstacles that can stand in the way of entrepreneurial development for women.
Women like Wendy Caal, from San Juan Chamelco, Alta Verapaz, are living examples of how the right kind of support can lift barriers and defy traditional gender norms. Wendy, much like other women, has found an economic opportunity and a voice to defy the social expectations imposed on women in her community.
“We’ve always been told that we, women, can’t get jobs, that we are too young and that we don’t have experience, and that there are no opportunities. But we must set an example for others (women), to overcome each obstacle that comes our way in life. This happens from the time we are students and they tell us that there are separate careers for women and separate careers for men. From that moment on, they deprive us of a different opportunity,” says Wendy.
The Road to Gender Equality in Entrepreneurship
From a rigorous gender perspective, Swisscontact carries out exhaustive market studies and analyses on the living conditions of women. This research has allowed us to formulate strategies deeply rooted in cultural relevance, especially in developing countries, with the clear objective of challenging gender stereotypes and the roles historically assigned to men.
Dilia Có Coy, technical specialist in empowerment and interculturality at Swisscontact, highlights the importance of this transformative approach: “By promoting and fostering women-led businesses, we are working to empower these women in highly vulnerable areas”, she states.
The entrepreneurship support methodology, led by Swisscontact, has given rise to a diversity of economic initiatives by women in sectors such as culinary arts, agriculture, tourism, local businesses, and mechanical trades, evidencing the transformative impact of women in their communities. This approach, embodied in the EMPODERA project, is aligned with the principles of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and represents a transcendental step toward gender equality and economic empowerment in the region.
